The Kingbreaker
by ThatYoungAuthor
Summary: He is an aristocrat; a sublime noble wrapped in enigma and dripped in charisma. His wealth is abundant and he shows no qualms in expressing his superiority - it's simply how a monarchy works. By fate his paths cross with an emotionless worker bound by chains of servitude, forever doomed to remain at the bottom of the food chain. They're an unlikely match, but still waters run deep.


The Kingbreaker

Chapter 1:

_Fate is strange_

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Kuroko had always been a hard-worker, devoting his entire focus to a certain task with such concentration that he sometimes got lost in the labyrinthine depths of his own mind. The first thing that managed to stop the young man on his tracks was the sensation of a rain drop gently falling atop of his cerulean blue pastel locks, the water drop immediately shattering itself and getting lost in the multitude of pale hair straps adorning Kuroko's inexpressive, flaxen facial features. At first his lean body froze under the touch, feet depositing themselves equidistant next to each other upon the unravel ground covered with dry mud - but as realization struck him, his heart jolted blissfully in his chest.

They had _rain_, after a long, dry summer.

"Kurokocchi...? Why are you standing there?" A familiar complaining voice wailed from inside a wooden building which had its large front doors wide open revealing the sight of a neat row of stables and straw bales stored opposite to the stalls. One of the stable doors swung open and a tall man stepped out of the stall, droplets of sweat glistening on his forehead and glueing his disheveled blonde fringe onto his pale skin, where it stuck like a leech. The moment his golden eyes flicked at Kuroko who simply stood unmoving under the grey skies, he mustered a sour look upon his face, pouting like a disappointed child who had been denied something they wanted.

"Hey, get a move on..." He grumbled as he picked up a bucket forgotten on the floor, and strolled off to the blue-haired male. "Seriously Kurokocchi, you-"

His complaints were cut short as his mouth dropped agape, incredulous irises gazing up at the heavy thick clouds gathering over the entire countryside, slowly starting to pour a cascade of rain on the wilting land that so yearned for it. At first the blond and the pastel-haired male merely stood beside each other in silence, until the downpour had utterly soaked them, dying their disarrayed hair a shade darker than normal and sticking their earth-stained woven clothes onto their pale skin.

"It's been so long since it rained last time!" The blond burst into laugh, the mirth in his voice undeniably purer than it had been for a long while. "It's refreshing!"

A ghost of a smile twisted the corners of Kuroko's lips into a slight curve upwards. It felt like a heavy rock would've been rolled off atop of his heart the moment he understood that the weather was getting humid again - for a servant working on one of the estate's of countryside, a rainless season was often packed full of stress and extra work. Without rain, the crops wouldn't flourish, the horses wouldn't be able to graze upon fresh nutritious grass and the wells would eventually dry off - meaning that the servants and landlord would have to make a trip outside the walls.

"Yes, Kise-kun, rain always brings great things with it. Our landlord will be delighted by this generous gift from nature."

A pair of golden orbs were intently trained on him as he spoke, but Kuroko got no other verbal response than a half-hearted humorless laugh that escaped Kise's lips - sounding a bit too forced and static for such a carefree persona as him. The periphery of Kuroko's eyes widened a little, an innocent but questioning expression plastered across his placid facial features. He'd known Kise for a time that felt like an eternity, since they were born into the same social class known as 'the workers' and had travelled together for long searching for a job, and Kuroko if anyone could tell if Kise was bothered by something.

"Is something wrong?"

Kise shook his head dismissively, trying to wave it off carelessly to the wind but Kuroko's gaze seemed only to intensify in wary, since his futile attempts were all-too obvious to the observant male.

"Gosh, it's nothing serious." He pouted, running a wet hand through his blond locks in frustration, sweeping them into disarray as he did so. "We should fetch the horses back inside anyway, so lets go."

"We can talk as we walk to the grazing area." Kuroko promised as he tugged gently his friends sleeve suggesting they'd return inside the horse stables, which Kise only let a sigh at and obediently followed the pastel-haired male, accepting his fate.

The small wooden building was hardly large enough to hold eight stalls and some room for stored hay bales and equipment for riding, but despite it's poor-looking exterior and the strong scent of horses enveloping the area, the stables were the most relaxing building in the farm in Kurokos opinion. Their landlord was very harsh on his workers and didn't allow them to sleep inside the main building that served as the home of the host family, but it had never bothered the blue-haired male. He'd grown used to the smell of hay and he'd become well accustomed to working with horses, so the attic they lived in was more than welcoming to him.

Kise sauntered after his blue-headed coworker, a slightly resentful look glazing in the golden tinted pupils of his; but the other male had turned his back to the blond, happily unaware of the glimmer that Kise had held in his eyes for a moment. While Kuroko lingered by the pile of halters, there was enough time for the taller male to return the bucket he'd been fiddling with to its original place.

"So, what was bothering you, Kise-kun?" Kuroko questioned as he picked up two halters from the pile they were set in, the usual monotone in his voice enhancing a curious note to it. The blond who'd paused by the hallway folded his arms above his muscular chest; not truly angered, but a bit irritated by how oblivious could the rather unemotional bluenette be. As the shorter of the two turned around and met the suddenly hardened gaze of his friend, an uncomfortable feeling churned at the bottom of his stomach as he sensed that something was not quite right.

"Doesn't it bother you?" A blond eyebrow curved into a doubting arc. "We're treated like trash around here, and yet you talk about it like it's... natural for us to be stomped over and tossed around as if we weren't human at all. The way you worded that sentence outside, how you said that our landlord would be delighted... It's not like the draught caused him any extra work, it was us who had to suffer."

Kuroko had frozen on the spot, darting his cerulean blue eyes back and forth, tentatively sweeping over the soaked form of his friend who stood unmoving waiting for his reply, dripping water to the floor from the straps of hair slipped on his forehead. Yes, he understood Kise's point: the world was cruel and biased, favoring those with power and property - it was nothing new to Kuroko. It was no surprise that in the monarchy they lived in, the social status classes were set in stone and determined by your family background: if you were not born in a royal- or noble family, there was no method of possibly succeeding to gain a better life, unless a king specifically ordered it.

However, men like their landlord who weren't nobles or royalties, if they belonged to the so-called middle class, they'd avoid the fate common workers like Kuroko and Kise had to face. For centuries certain families had owned estates scattered all around the vast countryside, their ownership over the farms being passed from generation to generation to the eldest son. It was a phenomenal sight to see anyone born into these farms to travel around the country - the only socially accepted people to travel were merchants, messengers, teachers or priests whom journied from estate to estate to serve the landlords.

Whomever was born on this land, they were bound to stay on it forever.

Traditionally, everyone stood loyal to their homes, which resulted in a host family consisting of young and old; men and women; children, parents and grandparents. Women weren't allowed to leave the large gates concealing the spacious farm inside of them, and men only left when they desperately needed something - like food or water. The farms were very independent and had all their resources raised, built and grown inside of the walls, and there was rarely any reason for anyone to leave their land.

Usually, those who were often seen trekking large distances out in the cold were the lowest class, consisting of ordinary travelers - who either ended up as thieves or bandits, or chose a life of servitude.

Kuroko and Kise weren't born into a class of any sort of high status. They were commoners, utterly disinteresting and unappealing, people who had to earn their living by stealing or serving a landlord. It was a life of no personal freedom, but at least their workplace provided some form of shelter and allowed them to eat a full meal twice a day.

"It did cause our landlord some inconveniences, Kise-kun. His farmland suffered from the dry weather." He attempted to defend his employer, feeling as if it was required of him. He wasn't fully satisfied with the lackadaisical treatment he received from his landlord and landlady, but at least they had been let into the farm and provided fulfillment of their basic humanly needs.

"Ah, yes, his money and property." Kise's voice was laced with bitterness. "I forgot that was all he has ever cared about."

They fell into an electric silence, tension hanging heavily in the air between them almost pushing them apart and elongating their emotional distance. The sudden change in atmosphere had rattled Kuroko and shook his confidence, leaving him helplessly scrutinizing at his friend who uneasily tried shrugging the minor conflict off. It was unusual of Kise to abruptly morph into a begrudging complainer - yes, the blond did often whine but it was never truly fervent.

"Sorry Kurokocchi." A small smile cracked at his pale lips, an apologetic shimmer in the depths of his chatoyant eyes. "I didn't mean to offend you, I guess I'm not mature enough to stop and think before leaping into an argument."

Even though the pastel-haired male masked under an expression devoid of emotions, behind that pale complexion he felt relieved.

"Yes, you're right, you need a few more years to mature up." Lashes blinked at Kuroko's vacant blank eyes, the expressionless teenager staring at the taller male standing a few meters away.

"So mean!"

The look Kuroko's startling blue eyes softened and a quick set smile managed to fight its way onto his lips - looked like Kise hadn't changed after all.

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Kise practically fell backwards onto the soft welcoming stack of hay awaiting for him, sinking into the dry straws with a tiresome sigh as emphasizes of his nearly unconscious state. Kuroko whose blue-haired head peered out of the entrance of the attic trapdoor, ascended himself up while carrying a lamp to lighten the rather dark, low-roofed room they called their home. Downstairs the sound of horses chewing on the hay they'd dumped into the floor of their stalls was barely audible over the distant roaring of thunder and the soothing sound of rain rhythmically pounding to the thin rooftop above their heads.

"Don't you think that the Kagami guy is pretty odd?" Kise the tireless chatterbox simply had never understood the occasional silences that introverts like Kuroko enjoyed once in a while to recharge their energy. Flicking up his gaze at Kuroko under his long lashes, he folded his arms behind his head and lied on his back relaxing his tensed muscles after a long day of work.

"Kagami-san?" The other male mused over his name, bringing a vivid image of the newcomer at the farm into his mind: he'd just started work yesterday and had already pleased their landlord more that Kuroko and Kise did in a week. The muscled, well-built redhead had enormous strength, especially compared to a slim teenager like Kuroko, and was able to lift large objects with little effort and overall had far more stamina than the blue-haired male.

However despite the fact that Kagami had clearly demonstrated better potential than his old workers, the landlord had ordered him to make himself comfortable in the changing room of the sauna. Kise had snickered snidely when the news was announced as the new coworkers had been introduced to each other, because the sauna was traditionally a place where the women gave birth and where people showered at, and somehow the blond had found it very amusing.

"Yeah, him." Kise nodded nonchalantly as he slipped his eyelids closed over his golden orbs. "I find him a bit odd, he stared at me sternly when we first met."

"It's no wonder since the first thing you said to him was a comment about his eyebrows." Came the remark from Kuroko who'd just laid down upon the pile of hays of his own, where the straws had dented in under the weight they were consistently put under.

"Hey!" Suddenly a pair of golden irises were shot wide open again, the blond teenager propping himself up with his elbows to cast a faked look of offense at Kuroko, wailing. "It's not like it was all my fault that he doesn't like me... Besides, his eyebrows really did catch my attention, they divide into two!"

"Kise-kun, please lower your voice-"

Kuroko's calming words were unnecessary because the sound of the barn door being pulled open, scraping the rocky ground underneath, managed to silence them both. The dim light from the lamp illuminating the attic was enough for both of the frozen teenagers to distinguish either ones surprised expressions clearly, and to exchange doubtful looks of suspicion with each other. Soon Kise's expression faded as an amused smile tugged at the other end of his lips, the blond undeniably thinking if Kagami had overheard them and headed here to slap the talkative blond hard enough to make his head spin.

Kuroko furrowed his brows in warning, shaking his head softly already knowing what was currently going on in Kise's head. A finger was risen to his lips in an universal "shh" -sign, which Kise thankfully took seriously.

The footsteps that led to the attic staircase were heavy and dragging, similar to a bears steps that would lazily amble forwards, the sound of the tracks all-too familiar to the two cowering up at the attic.

"Hopefully you aren't already asleep up there." Their landlord growled between gritted teeth, erratically slamming his fist onto the wooden staircase with a loud bang, making the horses locked up in the stalls neigh in fear and reveal the whites of their eyes as their eyes spun in their sockets. The sound of shuffling hoofs and disgruntled neighs made Kuroko knit his brows closer together in concealed irritation, but he bit his tongue subtly to contain his emotions within his calm exterior. There was nothing for him to do, after all the horses belonged to their landlord.

"Get up this instant and meet me by the main building. We've got important guests who'll stay for the night, come take care of their horses and put them in the empty stalls." Seeming to be satisfied with the sound of his workers staggering up from hay and brushing off the dust from their clothes, the landlord turned on his heel after giving orders presented in a relentlessly strict voice, and strolled out of the barn. The atmosphere was never positive when the rather plump landowner was poisoning the air with his petulant attitude and lowering his workers self-esteems, but it was a challenge both Kise and Kuroko had learned to put up with: eventually their tolerance for negativity had spurted into a increase, resulting in better self-discipline and self-control. Especially for Kise who had a natural talent for letting words slip off his tongue so smoothly that he hardly even realized himself what had he said out loud, the improvement in being in control of his blabbermouth was astounding.

"This is odd." Kise's murmurous voice mumbled as he fixed the helm of his dirty shirt hanging loosely over his fit torso. "I can't even remember the last time we had guests..."

"Maybe it's a teacher for the children of our host family, who happened to arrive late."

It was a possibility, even though Kuroko hardly even believed it himself. Indeed it was an unfamiliar sight for anyone important, as their landlord had addressed the guest, to travel through the countryside, and yet to spend the night over in an ordinary farm that didn't stand out from a multitude of others in any way... There were inns specifically built for travelers that could afford them, so it would've been realistic for the guest to stay over in one of those.

"Maybe." Kise's voice has a nonchalant timbre to it as he started climb down the stairs, Kuroko's empty eyes glazing with awareness of how little either of them was convinced, but without a word he rose up from the hay and followed.

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The storm rampaging outside had escalated to the point that the speed of wind was enough to noticeably slow down the two figures sloshing through the mud and water puddles formed on the uneven ground. Unless their pants would've been tucked inside their boots they would've surely gotten the ends of trousers dipped in sticky mud, but they were far too experienced and used to the working conditions at the farm so neither would miss out a detail like this.

The teeming downpour of rain showered on them almost painfully as they stalked through the cascade, navigating their way to the main building of the farm that was located around 600 meters away from the stables. A hand was raised above Kise's eyes to shelter them from the rain drops beating their bodies, his eyes squinted into narrow slits as he attempted to distinguish something in distance through the rain-blurred view.

"Oi, Kurokocchi, are those the guests?" He acclaimed in surprise as he immediately rushed a bit closer, forcing Kuroko to take extra large leaps to keep up with the rapid pace Kise was picking up. The road they had been trotting on slowly came to an end, broadening as it finally blended in together with the open area coated with cobblestones: this was the small clearing in front of the main family's home. Before them loomed a spacious wooden building appearing a bit old and grey, but to the hired workers it looked majestic - it was beyond their worth to even lay a step inside a house of such luxury.

Along the graveled main road approached a small group of people which only one of them was familiar to the workers hesitantly waiting by the main building: it was their feared landlord who briefly flicked his eyes at Kuroko and Kise, but he was too far away for them to comprehend his unspoken message. Behind him followed a slender black arabian horse ridden by a man dressed in a cloak with fancy golden patterns sowed to the helms of it; a sure sign of wealth. Behind the first man trailed two other, more sturdy and taller men whose trained bodies were armored with metallic protections on vital areas such as the chest, shoulders and knees. It wasn't the sort of heavy armor knights fighting for the army would wrap themselves in, but without a doubt these two men were guards who were on horseback to accompany their employer on his journey.

"Please allow me to assist you."

A sensation of disgust lingered in Kuroko's throat as he heard the overly helpful, eager words voiced by his landlord, the friendliness and hospitality flavoring his usually spiteful voice sounding foreign and misfitting, a bit creepy in a way. Their landlord grasped the reins of the beautiful arab that carefully flicked its audits towards the unfamiliar man holding it, but being the well-mannered stead it was raised to be, the noble animal maintained its proud stance. The man atop swung himself down from the saddle with efficient smooth movements, and as his feet landed softly on the mud the hood of his dark cloak slipped off his head revealing from beneath fiery red locks framing his pale complexion.

The next two thumps on the ground came from the guards dismounting their horses. All of the travelers were wet from the teeming rain showering on the land, but the redheaded nobleman standing closest to Kise and Kuroko didn't look much bothered by it - in fact, his expression told almost nothing to the workers eyeing at him. Quickly the straps of hair fluttering in the harsh wind were tinted a darker shade of red as water had wet them, the very same effect that had taken place with everyone else on the farm too.

"I will escort you to the main building, and my workers shall take your horses to our stables nearby." The landlord twisted his lips into a forced smile, which Kuroko and Kise automatically responded to by obediently stepping forwards to take the reins of the horses. As Kuroko wrapped his fingers around the reins of the graceful elegantly-built horse, the redhead who owned the animal reluctantly let go with a sort of stiffness to his move that it made Kuroko warily glance at the man, searching for signs of dislike in the appearance of the nobleman. He was taken by surprise as his icy orbs met the gaze of mismatched heterochromatic eyes, an unique combination of one golden and one red, both pupils trained on the the pale-haired worker who held his precious horse. Immediately Kurokos stomach sank in trepidation, the intimidating aura of authority radiating from the red-haired nobleman almost casting him in a bad light, making Kurokos nearly unnoticeable presence shrink even deeper into nonexistence.

A bit hesitantly the bluenette politely bent his back into a respectful bow that was a traditional way of greeting a superior, which the noble responded to by a short approving nod.

"Treat her well and with care." The redhead instructed with a placid, unshaken tone before his gaze veered to the awaiting landlord motioning with his hand towards the main building, welcoming them inside. Kise had taken both of the guards tawny-coated horses and started to walk them towards the stables, but Kuroko dwelled on the spot for a tentative moment watching as the redheaded nobleman and his guards sauntered over the cobblestone path inside the warm building. He was unsure of what he'd seen: had the nobleman given him a slight nonchalant glance over his shoulder a little before he'd stepped inside the house?

As he led the distrusting, a bit doubtful mare along the road to the stables, getting himself splashed upon by hard hoofs clopping to the puddles, the entire inside of Kuroko's mind was a sheer mess of disquietude and inquiring questions. Why were these important guests here? The chances were that everything was a mere coincidence... After all, they were clearly from the city - everything starting from their clothing to their way of handling their horses spoke for the fact. If they were just passing through the countryside, it wouldn't be shocking if the massive thunderstorm had forced them to end their journey a little earlier than expected.

"Kurokocchi?" A voice hollered from one of the stalls as Kuroko opened the stables door, walking the black arabian horse inside to shelter.

"Yes, it's me." He nodded while letting the horse step into its stall, audits upraised and nostrils dilated to pick up the palatable scent of hay surrounding the area. Kuroko was spellbound by the rare species that he'd gotten the honor of grooming; arabian horses were known to be a delicate, cherished breed belonging to those who possessed the money to own one. Under its midnight black coat he could see how powerful, well-developed muscles tensed and worked as the animal practically danced into the stall, every movement capturing the fine beauty it held.

He pressed his palm onto its sweaty and heated neck, realizing how much it must've been rode until they finally decided to take a break. The minutes he spent in silence taking off the reins and the saddle, brushing off dirt and dust attached to its slender figure and scarping off dried mud drained onto its slim legs - the minutes were pleasant and treasured. When the arduous task was finally completed and drops of sweat squirmed their way from beneath Kuroko's pastel hairline, he viewed the sight of the groomed arab chewing satisfied on the hay and once he saw no reason to continue, he left the stall and locked the door behind him.

He collaborated with Kise to groom the guards horses as well, listening with half-hearted interest to the loquacious blonde chatter and ramble on, occasionally being dredged from his own thoughts and giving his friend a response of some kind - ranging from a nod to a short answer. They gave some extra hay to the landlords horses as well that were banging at their stall doors with impatience and jealousy, but once munching on hay was all that was audible Kise eyed at their work with a pleased smile on his lips, announcing that they could go to sleep.

Indeed, they had gotten much less sleep than they had on any other given night, so the moment they collapsed each upon their own bed of hay, they'd fallen asleep immediately.

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The hazy, damp scent of mist and fresh grass managed to pierce through his dreams and fill his nostrils with its pleasant smell - and that was enough to make two vacant cerulean pupils snap open. The dim morning-darkness hovering over the room and the melodious chirping of birds outside was his favorite way of being greeted after wincing awake - after all, usually rampaging storms were followed by a fresh new morning, weren't they?

It still was earlier than Kise and Kuroko were expected to get up and start work, so the bluenette took his time as he propped himself into a sitting position and studied the sight of a certain blonde snore and snuggle into his stack of hay - Kise had fallen into a deep slumber, and Kuroko had no intentions of awakening him. The blue-haired male staggered up onto his feet careful not to wake up his tiresome coworker, trying to smoothen his sleep-tousled bed hair spiking into every direction while making his way downstairs to the horse stables. The moment his nearly inaudible footsteps were heard by the attentive audits of the horses, they welcomed him by a soft chortle and rotating their ears up high and facing him, a hungry glint in their wishful eyes.

Kuroko let out a small laugh as he extended his arm to let the nearest horse sniff it, glad to see them again. "I missed you too."

Then, he started to distribute equal amounts of hay to the rather impatient animals.

He'd been too absorbed in his duties that he hadn't heard light, sedate footsteps approach the stables, and he became aware of another persons presence only at the moment the barn door was pulled open, making the horses chortle again as a greeting. Kuroko had just given the guests' horses their hay when he stepped out of the black arabian mare's stall and allowed his blue irises to flicker at the direction of the wide-open doors, his eyes catching sight of the redheaded nobleman he had wished he wouldn't have to encounter again. Their gazes locked for a brief moment: the redhead's heterochromatic pupils having a pungent tint to them; but Kuroko's blue eyes staying as hollow and vacant as they had always been.

Kuroko was the first one to break free from the taut eye contact as the lowered his eyes and bowed slightly to the nobleman showing his respect and inferiority to the older man: it earned him a slightly less intense stare and a barely-there twist of his lips - was the aristocrat smiling a bit? The second the blue-haired worker tried to focus his gaze upon the nobleman, the expression seemed to fade away leaving Kuroko a bit perplexed, but regardless unaffected. He turned away and closed the arabians stall door, locking it tightly.

"It is early, Sir. May I help you?" It felt like the most appropriate thing to say as he glanced at the other male, pondering what would've been his intention to get up at this time and come to the stables.

"I came to see how was she doing." The redhead's placid tone was self-possessed and confident, concealing expertly every thought and emotion that could've lingered in his mind. Something inside Kuroko churned inside his stomach making him feel perturbed and uncomfortable, but he forced himself to appear unfazed.

The arabian mare gave a soft, affectionate neigh at the nobleman, as if it would've known what the two were talking about. Kuroko replied with a lack of tone to his voice.

"She's been doing alright. She's very well-behaved and has a good nature."

"Of course." The redhead uttered as if it was obvious and stepped closer to his mare's stall, which the arab responded to by extending her long muscled neck and dilating her nostrils as she picked up the familiar scent of her owner. "She's been bred from the best of her kind, raised and trained accordingly."

The worker nodded in understanding and mustered a feeble trace of a smile upon his lips - the sort of confident, authoritarian energy that seemed to engulf the nobleman was a bit reserving for Kuroko, but the way the aristocrat treated his horse made his likeableness increase in the younger male's eyes. He might've been one of those proud rich men from the city that were practically drowning in their splendor and abundant wealth, but he wasn't cruel to animals which was a quality that Kuroko had always appreciated in other people. There wasn't enough love left in this world that it could've been graciously sprinkled around like fairy dust, especially not enough for animals.

"I see. She's a beautiful creature." It felt like it would've been impolite to merely nod to a aristocrat like him, so he quickly replied with the first words that popped into his mind.

The redhead hummed vaguely in response, stroking his mare's groomed ebony coat and running her black mane through his fingers like silk, seeming as if he'd ignored Kuroko's words. Maybe it had been the end of the conversation anyway.

He returned back to his mundane morning tasks he went through every morning: feeding the horses, making sure they had clean water, cleaning their stalls, brushing their coats and scooping out dirt, mud and pebbles off their hoofs. The redheaded nobleman lingered by the black arab's stall, his unclear mumbling carrying into Kuroko's ears as the worker continued with his routine, smiling a bit to himself as he listened in half-hearted interest to the aristocrat murmur unimportant things to his horse.

Before Kuroko was done with his workload, he was interrupted by the sound of the stable doors being pulled open again: this time one of the red-haired nobleman's guards stepping into the barn, his footsteps heavy as he strolled in.

"Akashi-san, our hosts have prepared you breakfast to enjoy before we will carry on with our journey."

The usual absent expression ironed onto Kuroko's facial features faltered a little, curiosity peeking in his eyes as he briefly flickered his orbs towards the other men in the hallway, pretending to be busy with grooming a horse as he did so. Within those ephemeral seconds he'd spent peering at them, he'd caught a glimpse of a glazed look plastered upon the redhead's face; it was the exact same expression he'd worn the entire time Kuroko had seen him yesterday in the storm. So... His name was Akashi? It felt comforting to at least know the stranger by name.

Before he left, Akashi tilted his head a bit into Kuroko's direction, his voice quite disinterested and indifferent as he spoke out clearly. "Prepare our horses."

It was a direct command which gave Kuroko no other option than to merely nod in understanding, lips sealed shut as he watched the two men leave the building. Something heavy landed atop of his heart, something that wasn't supposed to be there; it's newly acquired weight anchoring his heart deeper down, almost smothering him within the unnatural, acrid sensation. Kuroko let out an airy breath, gasping at the foreign feeling - why did the acknowledgement of the redheaded nobleman's departure affect him?

Was there something eccentric about Akashi, an unraveled enigma, that attracted the pastel-haired male like a magnet? No matter how his rational mind insisted _no_, his traitorous heart sang _yes_.

It was odd how hearts were such wild creatures. A soft, glad smile rose upon Kuroko's lips - it was a good thing that he had learned to tame his own.

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A/N: All reviews are greatly appreciated! The first chapter was an easy-going introduction to the story, but stay tuned because there's a lot more to come (: If anyone had questions about the setting (culture, traditions, economy, etc.), then feel free to present them.


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